By Alex Strzetelski
Spending a certain amount of time in the kitchen isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Spending to much time in the kitchen, however, can lead to less time for other activities in your search for work/life balance. Although some may disagree, cooking generally leads to some family time around the dining table. It is the getting to the dining table that often takes the time.
In today’s household there is the possibility for the cook to be active in the family matters going on about them, although it can be difficult when the cook is trying to concentrate on preparing the meal. Finding time to be a part of those activities, along with making time for other activities (like running late), can be made simpler if a few preparatory steps are taken before hand.
Order ingredients ahead of time
There are several ways of finding time with food as you go about the task of preparing a meal. Even before you begin try ordering as many dry good food stuffs ahead of time as you can. In this way you will have everything you need without going to the store. The best way to go, as far as time savings overall is concerned, is to order from http://www.asimplelifeforyou.com“Finding time shopping” page. There are many food stuffs that will keep for long periods without going bad. As a general starting point, www.mealsmatter.org suggests the following basics to have in your cupboard:
Boxed pasta,baking powder canned soup broth cubes or powder
Canned stew tuna canola oil ceareals
Chips cinnamon coffee crackers
Curry powder dry pasta evaporated milk flour
Garlic garlic salt ginger nutmeg
Olives olive oil onions pasta sauce
Pepper potatoes pretzels rasins
Vinegar rice salt sugar
Tea tomato sauce vanilla extract
www.Mealsmatter.org is a great site with a bunch of interesting meal planning ideas for nutrition and variety with a dash of organization. Check them out you’ll likely find some great ideas.
www.asimplelifeforyou.com is another great site. It will save you time when you need to do some quick errands that require driving here and there. Buy your cupboard items on the find time shopping page under Amazon
Of course there are others that can be added to taste, if you’ll pardon the pun (please stop me), but the general idea is not to be caught short if a quick meal is needed. At the worst you’ll need to make a quick 30 second stop on the way home for a meat/veggies course or whatever (A MUST: do not look for other stuff at the store, you’ve already ordered what you need online. You’re in and you’re out. Be disciplined.)
A new time saving product
If you do HAVE TO go to the store there is a new product on the market that may be able to help in saving you time once there. It’s a cell phone with a twist. The phone can do all the wiz bang things that cells do these days but it also carries a meal planner, picture of the meal with ingredients and a list generator (time saver tip: generate a list and stick to it, no impulse buys.) We’ve never used it but it looks interesting. It’s called MobileLiving ingredients for an easy lifestyle and can be found at www.allfocus.com. Just as a suggestion, you might combine this product with your sit-down to order online dry stuffs. You’ll have all the ingredients in the phone to order with, if you haven’t already got them in the cupboard, and a schedule for the week’s meals (a time saver.)
One or two weeks of freshly made meals ready to go
The possibility of a weeks meals prepared ahead of time is a concept that will make your finding time life immensely easier. This is a trend that has been growing in recent years, and one that works well. You simply section out a small block of time for the number of meals you’re about to prepare (generally a tin tray for 4-8 peoples meals) and make a call for a starting time. You make the stop at a convenient mall location or wherever, and find all the menus, food ingredients (all measured), packaging and camaraderie/networking right there in one place. The menus change regularly and in an hour or so, “bam!”, you’ve got one or two weeks of dinners/lunches ready for the oven or microwave.
The ladies here have tried it and say it’s incredibly fun (if you listen to Susan tell it) and saves a bunch of time. Especially if others are around to set the table and clean up (which is constituted of putting glasses and silverware in the dishwasher and washing the tray for recycling.)We haven’t yet found something nationally that will tell us where these places are but we’re on it and will let you know. Check on-line or your local pages.
What I guess we’re pointing out here is that if you can get yourself set up ahead of time you’ll be five steps closer to having a bunch of free time through the week. We know we may be front loading you a bit but when your “me time” kicks in through out the week you’ll be buying the margaritas’, we’ll bring the salt, no wait, lime… you’ve already got the salt in your cupboard… don’t you?
Find extra time as you shop at www.asimplelifeforyou.com
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Are You Ready for a Work/Life Balance?
By Alex Strzetelski
Nobody needs to tell a sole proprietor or busy individual that they don’t have enough time to accomplish their daily “to do list.” One would then wonder why 32 percent of these same people would spend freed up time thinking of new ways to generate new business or other things to do? According to Visa USA and SCORE “Councilors to Small Business” this is exactly what sole proprietors and other busy individuals do.
What happened?
So, what happened to this work/life balance thing that everybody is talking about? spending more time with the family, getting more exercise or just sitting and thinking. Isn’t this what everybody wants?
Supposing that work/life balance is what sole proprietors want, why don’t they just hirer a few people to do what appears to be taking up all their time during the day. This would let them “build the business” or just take a walk on the beach and think.
Controlling Issues
As it turns out, these folks have already figured out where they need the help. It’s just that they aren’t ready to let total control of their fledgling operation go. For small businesses and sole proprietorships 28 percent of those surveyed would delegate marketing duties, 26 percent sales and 25 percent operations. None would let the financials go but it does leave 21 percent for the financials, work/life/business growth issues and the always ubiquitous “other” category.
So, there does appear to be some “wiggle room” in there for work/life balance, but is it taken or just plowed right back into the business by not letting go? And then there is the expense. How does a sole proprietor or busy person pay for these services that are supposed to make business or life easier? Not to mention that there’s the question of how one keeps an eye on these services.
Making a Decision and Letting Go
It might be here that the stress part of running a business/family/event comes into play. At some point, however, the fact that the person involved cannot do it all and still maintain some semblance of sanity remains. Only the individual involved can make the decision to implement a new strategy. But then again, isn’t this at the heart of the entire matter, you as the individual making the decision?
The real question arises for this group of people. What level of work/life balance in terms of control, lifestyle, sanity and profit are you looking for and what are you willing to do to achieve it without driving yourself, and those around you, into the ground?
Create more time for yourself buy shopping at http://www.asimplelifeforyou.com
At what Cost
For the sole proprietor, small business or individual these options raise far too many issues when considering what levels you, as this individual, are willing to meet in order to feel positive about the direction you and your professional/personal life are taking. It also points out that you are willing to make a change, and accept change, at each step along the process of finding your particular perception of balance.
So, to think that all possible options are correct for all individuals is, of course, naïve. Hiring a permanent employee may work for one person while outsourcing a task or tasks may work for another. What asimplelifeforyou.com is trying to offer is the ability to understand how others have addressed, or are attempting to address, the issue of creating a balance for themselves in a very busy world.
asimplelifeforyou.com will be here to give you ideas for reaching the many possible solutions of what “balance” may mean for you and how it may be used. If you have found balance through a particular method let us know. If you have thoughts about your progress also let us know.
Create more time for yourself buy shopping at http://www.asimplelifeforyou.com
Nobody needs to tell a sole proprietor or busy individual that they don’t have enough time to accomplish their daily “to do list.” One would then wonder why 32 percent of these same people would spend freed up time thinking of new ways to generate new business or other things to do? According to Visa USA and SCORE “Councilors to Small Business” this is exactly what sole proprietors and other busy individuals do.
What happened?
So, what happened to this work/life balance thing that everybody is talking about? spending more time with the family, getting more exercise or just sitting and thinking. Isn’t this what everybody wants?
Supposing that work/life balance is what sole proprietors want, why don’t they just hirer a few people to do what appears to be taking up all their time during the day. This would let them “build the business” or just take a walk on the beach and think.
Controlling Issues
As it turns out, these folks have already figured out where they need the help. It’s just that they aren’t ready to let total control of their fledgling operation go. For small businesses and sole proprietorships 28 percent of those surveyed would delegate marketing duties, 26 percent sales and 25 percent operations. None would let the financials go but it does leave 21 percent for the financials, work/life/business growth issues and the always ubiquitous “other” category.
So, there does appear to be some “wiggle room” in there for work/life balance, but is it taken or just plowed right back into the business by not letting go? And then there is the expense. How does a sole proprietor or busy person pay for these services that are supposed to make business or life easier? Not to mention that there’s the question of how one keeps an eye on these services.
Making a Decision and Letting Go
It might be here that the stress part of running a business/family/event comes into play. At some point, however, the fact that the person involved cannot do it all and still maintain some semblance of sanity remains. Only the individual involved can make the decision to implement a new strategy. But then again, isn’t this at the heart of the entire matter, you as the individual making the decision?
The real question arises for this group of people. What level of work/life balance in terms of control, lifestyle, sanity and profit are you looking for and what are you willing to do to achieve it without driving yourself, and those around you, into the ground?
Create more time for yourself buy shopping at http://www.asimplelifeforyou.com
At what Cost
For the sole proprietor, small business or individual these options raise far too many issues when considering what levels you, as this individual, are willing to meet in order to feel positive about the direction you and your professional/personal life are taking. It also points out that you are willing to make a change, and accept change, at each step along the process of finding your particular perception of balance.
So, to think that all possible options are correct for all individuals is, of course, naïve. Hiring a permanent employee may work for one person while outsourcing a task or tasks may work for another. What asimplelifeforyou.com is trying to offer is the ability to understand how others have addressed, or are attempting to address, the issue of creating a balance for themselves in a very busy world.
asimplelifeforyou.com will be here to give you ideas for reaching the many possible solutions of what “balance” may mean for you and how it may be used. If you have found balance through a particular method let us know. If you have thoughts about your progress also let us know.
Create more time for yourself buy shopping at http://www.asimplelifeforyou.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)